‘Mayor’ of Melrose trying a different tactic with Seattle’s homeless problem

While some Seattle leaders are calling for placing the homeless in encampments or giving them the boot altogether, the “Mayor” of Melrose has a different approach: Try respect.

Patrick Jones has a whale of a life story, but it can boil down to this: he was adopted, is a former Marine and drug addict. In other words, he’s had help and structure and wants to pass it back along.

He’s been transforming the lower Capitol Hill area into Melrose for years, with dog parks and other attempts to activate otherwise unused areas. For the past six years, he’s been holding a free concert series called “Random acts of music” at Plymouth Pillars Park, located alongside I-5. This year’s festivities run July 8th to Sept. 16.

Jones says there was a spike of homeless individuals camping behind, and doing drugs, at the pillars last year, and he worked with police to temporarily remove the campers from the space during the festivities. However, he’s taken it upon himself to, more or less, take ownership of the issues this year, trying to better get to know the Melrose frequenters and stay on top of potential problems.

“They all call me the mayor,” he says. “The dialogue has to be positive. If it’s not, it’s hard to move ahead. You just treat them with respect.”

Related: Homeless encampment near Woodinville moved for ‘the most King County reason’

Jones, in conjunction with the Seattle Parks Department, created a pilot program that added tables and chairs to Pillars park. Jones says he checks on them every day and is taking personal responsibility for graffiti and damage.
He says his more vocal relationship with the homeless in the area started last year and, in turn, he’s been getting more positive feedback through this year. He asked them not to drink beer during last year’s festivities, which he says they generally respected. Mainly, he stays visible, has a consistent line of communication and doesn’t talk down to them.

“There’s a lot of tension in this city and I wish we could all just take a deep breath,” he said. “We’ve got to move on because we are full of that venom.”

Jones says he’s floated ideas about building a shelter that would be free to those who help clean up the Melrose area — not unlike the Doe Fund — but has had no official backers.

The concert series is generally aimed at the off-leash dog walking community and the elderly, but he’s happy to see his homeless neighbors enjoy the festivities, so long as they provide him the same respect as he provides them.

“The homeless are our community whether we like it or not,” he said. “This is an opportunity for them to enjoy, too. It’s everyone’s park, but you have to treat it with respect.”

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